Beautiful frosty morning at Combe Valley CP y'day. Wildfowl gathered around pockets of thawing ice inc 600 Teal, 200 Shoveler, 80 Pintail + this presumed Blue-winged x Cinnamon Teal hybrid. Also 12 Snipe, 5 Water Rail, 10 Reed Bunting & a Water Pipit along the river path.

Deep dive on December's gull vismig in Hastings up on the blog. Gull-per-minute counts, speculative subspecies assignment and countless grainy flight shots of gulls - this post has it all. omissuswildlife.uk/blog/gull-vism…

Damp, misty morning for March WeBS count at Combe Valley CP. Notable arrival of 13 Chiffchaff (8 in song), Meadow Pipit numbers up too. Lots of gulls passing through inc 12 Med (mostly adults) and 2CY Caspian. Also 170 Pintail, 25 Pochard, Jack Snipe, Water Pipit and 50 Siskin.

Nice spread of spring arrivals at Combe Valley CP this morning, including 2 Garganey, Little Ringed Plover, 5 Sand Martin NW, male Wheatear and a Willow Warbler in song. Sussex Birding

Highlights from a West Hill (Hastings) seawatch this morning 7:35-9:40: a Pale-bellied Brent among 436 Dark-bellied moving east and a drake Eider which flew east with two Red-throated Divers. Sussex Birding

This 2CY / 1st-cycle Yellow-legged Gull with a damaged wing has been seen regularly along Hastings seafront since December. It now appears to be in active primary moult (p1-4 new, p5 growing, p6-10 old) months ahead of typical schedule. A response to the wing damage?

Plenty of spring migrants in at Combe Valley CP this morning: pair of Garganey on SW end of floods, Reed Warbler, 3 Sedge Warbler, Sand Martin, 13 Swallow, 4 Willow Warbler, 18 Chiffchaff, 11 Blackcap, Common Whitethroat and Nightingale. Sussex Birding

Lovely to experience a bit of the Northern Wheatear fall yesterday with at least eight scattered among the boat yards, sea defences and amusements of Hastings seafront. Sussex Birding

A brief singing Golden Oriole y'day morning in the Brede Valley, from somewhere within the railway embankment trees along Doleham Ditch. Audio below 🔊 starting with a couple of screech calls then some fluting phrases. No sign since sadly. Sussex Birding

Purple Heron flew NE over Harbour Road from Castle Water area (RHNR) at 07:50 Sussex Birding

Arrived at Pett Level this morning to the spectacle of hundreds of Swift pouring west, then almost immediately (c8:15) picked up a Black Kite being hassled by an Oystercatcher over the marsh. It quickly moved off west with 3 Red Kites. Not what I expected in a strong NW and rain!

Absolute panic as I flushed this 2CY Purple Heron from a path-side ditch at Combe Valley CP this morning, chucking the scope in a bush to quickly get the camera up! What a beauty. Also 4 Hobby hunting over the floods, some of which must've been new in. Sussex Birding

Crossness Nature Reserve, one of few remaining fragments of Erith Marshes and an amazing London wildlife site, is under threat from development. The local campaign needs funds to support a legal challenge - please consider giving: crowdjustice.com/case/scnr/ Erith Marshes - Save Crossness Nature Reserve!

The first Yellow-legged Gulls of the autumn appeared in Guernsey today. A sub-adult in Perelle Bay and a fresh juvenile at St. Saviour's Reservoir. The juvenile is my earliest and probably the island's earliest in autumn ever. Guernsey Birds

A single Green Sandpiper was the only notable from my WeBS count at Combe Valley CP this morning, the floods now being largely dry. Still plenty to see though including juvenile Sedge Warbler, Cuckoo and Marsh Harrier. Sussex Birding Sussex Ornithology

Some signs of southward movement at Hastings Country Park this morning with this Northern Wheatear near the radar station plus juveniles of Sedge Warbler and Willow Warbler. Sussex Birding

Big eastward movement of gulls along Hastings seafront this morning, in humid and hazy conditions with a light NE. Hundreds of birds, majority juvenile, in mixed species groups - mainly (in order of abundance) Herring, Black-headed, Mediterranean and Common. Sussex Birding

Let up in the weather and some evidence of migration up at Hastings CP this morning, including 2 Willow Warbler, 2 Lesser Whitethroat, 5 Wheatear, 6 Yellow Wagtail, 2 alba Wagtail and 4 Tree Pipit (pictured). Sussex Birding Sussex Ornithology

Dreamy early autumn morning at Hastings CP: highlights were a Redshank over and 4 Common Redstart; also 18 Common Buzzard, 2 Sedge Warbler, Reed Warbler, Whinchat, 3 Wheatear and 25 Yellow Wagtail. Sussex Birding Sussex Ornithology

Notables at Hastings CP y'day morn were a GW Egret west along cliffs, 8 GS Woodpecker flitting between scrub and my first two migrant Firecrest of autumn. Also 2 Whinchat, 40 Com Chiffchaff, 1 Grey Wag, 16 Yellow Wag, 7 alba Wag, 123 Meadow Pipit. Sussex Birding Sussex Ornithology